Frank Eathorne, chairman of the Wyoming Republican Party, told the Wyoming Ford Center audience in Casper on Saturday he “would run through a barbed wire fence” for former President Donald Trump.
Eathorne was the first in a series of speakers to express fierce loyalty to Trump and strong support for congressional candidate Harriet Hageman at the “Save America Rally” at the Ford Wyoming Center in Casper.
Before Trump’s scheduled arrival at 4 p.m., a series of Wyoming and national political figures took to the lectern to express their support for Hageman in her GOP primary race against U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney.
While most speakers did not address Cheney directly, some, like MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, took pointed shots at the three-term representative.
“Liz Cheney is leading the pack to block everything,” Lindell told the crowd.
Most speakers focused on Hageman and support for conservativism in addressing the GOP primary for Wyoming’s lone U.S. House seat.
“Thanks to you, a red wave is coming,” former state legislator Marti Halverson said of Trump.
Eathorne and Halverson both referred to Wyoming’s strong support for Trump, a state where he won the 2020 election by a wider margin of victory than in any other state in the gin of victory than any other state.
“Welcome to mega-ultra, MAGA-country,” Halverson said.
State Sen. Cheri Steinmetz, R-Lingle, also expressed support for Trump and Hageman.
“Now more than ever before, the people are responsible for the character of their Congress,” Steinmetz said. “If that party is ignorant, reckless and corrupt, it is because the people tolerate ignorance, recklessness and corruption.”
Multiple speakers including Lindell expressed their belief that the election of 2020 was stolen, a theme repeated often by Trump.
“We need to terminate the machines everywhere — bye-bye machines,” Lindell. He did not offer any solutions or alternatives to the voting machines he vaguely referred to.
All of the speakers expressed optimism for the future.
“You are the solution God created for the world today,” Steinmetz said to the audience.
Speakers also included several national figures, such as U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Florida, who was supposed to attend the event but instaed appeared by video.
Gaetz, who visited Wyoming in 2021 to speak against Cheney, once again criticized the incumbent.
“Liz Cheney- she is the swamp,” he said. “Now, (she) seeks the affirmation of the media.”
Gaetz said Wyoming voters have the right to “banish” Cheney in the election, and criticized her for not being a Wyoming native.
Cheney has spoken of her Wyoming roots, with members of her family living in the state as far back as the 1800s. She moved to Wyoming in 2012.
“Work hard, campaign hard,” Gaetz implored the audience. “Send Harriet to Congress and send Liz home to Northern Virginia where the rest of the swamp is.”
Other national political figures included U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colorado, who touted her pro-gun beliefs and criticized Texas gubernatorial candidate Beto O’Rourke, a gun control advocate, in her speech. She also described herself as a “professional RINO (Republican in name only) hunter” and said Trump is her “favorite president,” a “family man, a businessman.”
“I run my mouth a lot and I give God glory,” she said.
Boebert called “fake media” the “virus,” pointing out to the audience with a broad smile, acknowledging an approving cheer
She came to a climax point in her speech leading a thunderous “we love Trump” chant from the audience.
U.S. Rep. Kat Cammack, R-Florida, started a “Let’s go Brandon” chant, an insulting reference directed at Biden. She also said she enjoys irritating Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-California, to make her wring her “little fingers.”
About 30 minutes before Hageman took the stage, “Save America” signs were disbursed to the audience behind the lectern.
Neither U.S. Sens. Cynthia Lummis or John Barrasso made any kind of appearance at the event.
Also speaking by video was Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-New York, chair of the House Republican Conference. Stefanik replaced Cheney as the chair and earlier this spring, openly discussed working to oust her. Despite endorsing Hageman earlier this year, Stefanik mispronounced her name in her Saturday speech.
“I’m proud to have replaced Liz Cheney as Republican chair,” Stefanik said, bringing a cheer from the audience. “We need a Trump supporter in congress, not a Pelosi puppet”
Bringing the loudest cheers of all video speakers was Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), one of Trump’s most loyal foot soldiers in the House. The audio quality was exceptionally poor during Jordan’s segment and the audience did not respond as loudly to his comments.
“Come fight against the crazy left and the crazy things they’re doing in this country,” he said.
